Alfred: The Long Road Home

The reader is in for some exciting experiences and scary moments as Alfred, a ten-year-old boy, makes a journey to Arkansas from Kentucky and back, traveling back roads and trails. He is hoping to meet his pap returning from a trip. Gypsies rescue Alfred from a snowstorm and he travels with them until kidnaped by a misguided farmer. Cowboys on their way to Oklahoma come to his aid. He travels with them until their trails part. Chickasaw Indians take Alfred to their reservation and care for him until his blistered feet heal. Alfred endures the trauma of losing his pet crow, crossing the Mississippi River by ferry twice, and finding unexpected changes in places and people. These are only a few of Alfred’s many experiences. He encounters kind people, and people who were not. Most of the time he feels watched over. Alfred’s knowledge of nature serves him well while traveling alone. The ending of the book is unpredictable but satisfying.